Good morning, Mets fans!

Former Yankee Harrison Bader is one of the voices commending Mets new manager Carlos Mendoza. Bader shared his thoughts tonight at Joe Torre‘s Safe at Home charity gala in midtown, as reported by Anthony McCarron of SNY. Bader says: “Baseball is obviously going in a direction where you have to manage the front office and manage the analytical department, but, at the same time, you need to manage and take care of your players, understand their personalities, understand what makes them tick, knowing u have to build them up and sometimes slow them down. His personality, his level of intelligence, it’s a good recipe for balancing those acts, because it’s no easy undertaking, especially in NY. He’s certainly cut out for it.”

Now onto the morning briefing!

Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Latest MLB News

According to Jon Heyman from the New York Post, the Los Angeles Dodgers are currently leading in the race to acquire Shohei Ohtani. Heyman indicates that the general consensus at the GM meetings this week is that Los Angeles is the frontrunner due to their efforts in managing payroll, impressive track record of success, and their favorable west coast location. For more on this, check out our article on the news.

The Detroit Tigers announced that they have hired broadcaster Jason Benetti away from the Chicago White Sox to become the team’s main play-by-play broadcaster. Benetti announced for his hometown White Sox for seven plus seasons, along with appearing on Fox Sports, Peacock and ESPN. Benetti replaces outgoing Tigers broadcaster Matt Shepard.

As per Dennis Lin, the Padres beat writer for The Athletic, it has been reported that the Padres held a formal interview with Phil Nevin for the managerial position on Wednesday. Sources, who informed both Lin and Britt Ghiroli of The Athletic, have confirmed this development. Padres general manager A.J. Preller stated yesterday that an official decision on the matter might be revealed as soon as next week.

Latest on MMO

Sam Neumann reports on Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor winning a Silver Slugger award.

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Evan Mazza highlights David Stearns’ comments on Pete Alonso and a possible trade.

On This Date in Mets History

Birthdays: Omar Minaya (65), Shawn Green (51), Butch Huskey (52), Junior Noboa (59), Kenny Rogers (59), Mike Vail (72)